Contesting a Ticket Based on Discrepancy as to Location
My question involves traffic court in the State of Washington. I received a ticket for following too close. I was NB on I-405 in Renton on the Maple Valley exit ramp where I bumped a women car because there was oil on the roadway ( i.e. car slid). I got out to talk to her and we both agreed that it was nothing - no damage etc. and this WSP was on the other side of the freeway writing a ticket. He jumped over the barrier, ran across the freeway and started yelling at me to exchange personal data with the women. Then I explained to him that was non of his business and that we mutually agreed to no to make an issue of this. The officer wrote me for following too close. I explained and pointed to the oil sheen on the pavement which was also wet from rain, and that there was no damage. He wrote me the ticket and told me to tell it to the judge. ISSUES: There was no accident report, and the officer said this was a non-reportable accident on back of ticket. Further, the Officer indicated on the ticket that the accident occurred on MP4 (mile post 4 which is in renton), However, in his sworn statement he said that the accident occurred at the I-405/I-167 Interchange. Any thoughts about suppression of evidence based on conflicting testimony - internal inconsistency in his sworn statement ? What evidence rule for conflicting testimony that would cast testimony in doubt ? thanks in advance Biggy
Re: Contesting a Ticket Based on Discrepancy as to Location
The fact that the officer made a report is what makes it non-reportable (you're not obliged to make one since he investigated it).
You won't get the entire thing suppressed, but you can certainly point out this discrepency and try to make some point as to why any of it is relevant to your case.
Your excuse is largely meaningless, you're expected to leave more following distance when there is wet/slick pavement. Running into the car you're following is prima facie evidence you were too close.
Re: Contesting a Ticket Based on Discrepancy as to Location
"the pavement had oil on it" which was noticeable after I was stopped - is an environmental factor not expected in the safe following distance calculus - and the officer also did not completely fill out the ticket as to model and color of my car ..
Re: Contesting a Ticket Based on Discrepancy as to Location
Yes, if you rear-ended a vehicle traveling in front of you, you were following too close for conditions. You can bring up discrepancies as to location and ask the court to dismiss should you wish ... I suspect the court may not find the location issue compelling, but, you never know.
Re: Contesting a Ticket Based on Discrepancy as to Location
Actually it is non-reportable because property damage did not exceed the $500 accident-reporting threshold per RCW 46.52.030.
Milepost 4 is Maple Valley and I-405/I-167 is about 1.7 miles further south, so definitely that is a discrepancy. You could try moving to suppress the statement but I don’t know what if any evidence rule would apply.
Did the officer actually see the accident? If not the prosecution will probably need the other driver to show up and testify.
According to IRLJ 2.1(b)(3) required information for your car is “make, year, model, style, license number, and state in which licensed” so you can bring up model but not color. However since this probably does not prejudice your substantial rights it would be a weak argument. The location discrepancy is much stronger.